One of the reasons I enjoy camping is that it is about the only chance I get to feel any type of a struggle to survive.

Think about it: most people in our society never have to deal with the struggle to survive until they are very old. This is something very new to humanity. Virtually every generation of humans before us had a much more intimate understanding of what it means to surive. Survival is very easy now. Even on a parltry annual income of, say, $10,000, survival is still very very easy.

In this day and age, we are blessed enough that we do not need to feel the pangs that accompany the struggle to survive. We have it easy. Most Americans have far more calories available to them than they need; so many calories that, ironically, it expedites our journey to being in a more legitimate fight to stay alive. That is, of course, because of the health risks associated with excess caloric consumption.

While we have every reason to feel grateful for how easy it is to remain alive, in a way, there is something empty about it. There is a bond that almost every human to have existed shares which we are left out on. That is the bond of survival. We have no intimate awareness of what it is like to truly struggle to stay alive. Most of us don’t, anyway.

That’s why camping can be such a rewarding activity. Of course, camping can be designed to be nearly as safe and free of risk as staying at home for the night, but it can also be designed to replicate the struggle to survive that our ancestors went through. Best of all: it’s you, the camper, who gets to choose how primitive of an experience you want.

It goes without being said that you should always practice common sense. Watch the movie Into the Wild if you need a lesson on what can happen when you camp recklessly. But camping provides an amazing opportunity to put yourself in a situation where you are almost entirely void of the comforts we’ve grown accustom to in our glutanous society.

I challenge you to let your next camping experience be a little less cushy than you are used to. Leave the Tempurpedic pillow and gas-powered generator at home. Try camping in the way early humans had no choice: a nightly struggle for survival. I promise the white picket fence will be waiting on you when you leave the woods!

Who isn’t looking for a good deal these days? While camping and campground fees have always been a great deal, there’s a website I just found, freecampgrounds.com that currently has over 1,600 campsites listed that are either free or almost free, meaning $10 or less.

The website is really easy to use. Just click on the state you want to camp in and scroll through the list. Most camping areas have a scenery and noise level rating; the number of campsites; the maximum days allowed; nearest city; amenities; months open; and a description. Plus, many of the listings have comments from people who have camped there which is great information to have.

Here’s a couple FREE camping places I found:

MONTANA
Columbus. It’s a city owned campground on Yellowstone River. It’s free to camp there but donations are accepted. It’s open all year but the bathroom closes in the winter. It has a scenery rating of 5 out of 5, and a noise level of 1 out of 5.

FLORIDA
Apalachicola Boondocking. The description on freecampgrounds.com says, “I live in Apalachicola, and I know that a lot of RVs and travel trailers camp all over town. Just find a parking lot and pull in. If you go though the blinking caution light (from the east headed west), don’t turn following 98, go straight. Several places along this short road to pull up for the night, but follow to the end (about 1 mile) and you end up at the harbor with all the shrimp boats. Lots of parking there! This is a beautiful coastal village with great seafood restaurants and interesting shops and galleries. There is a lot of history here and is worth a few days stay. St. George Island is 12 miles away with its sugar white sand and beautiful beaches! This isn’t called the “Forgotten Coastline” without reason. It’s totally unspoiled!”

CALIFORNIA
Big Bar Campground near the Trinity River. The nearest town is Big Bar and the nearest city is Eureka. It’s open year round.

These are just a few examples. Check the website out for yourself and find a free or nearly free campground to stay at on your next camping trip!

Winter is just a heartbeat away and it will not be long before there is coating of white fluffy snow on the ground in many parts of the United States. That means it is time to winterize your popup camper so it can be stored for the winter, unless you are one of those hardy souls that relishes winter camping.

Your popup camper, like any piece of camping equipment, needs to be maintained each year to keep it in great shape. Many people ask, “When is the best time to winterize my pop-up?” The obvious answer is, “before winter”. The primary goal of winterizing your pop-up is to prepare it to survive the cold winter months without damage. But this annual ritual is also necessary to perform routine maintenance and to be sure that when you open that pop-up for your first camping trip next year, it is ready to go.

The “when” question is more pertinent to your camping plans than to the weather. When you have completed your last camping trip of the year and are ready to store your, that’s the ideal time to winterize it.

Your winterizing schedule includes performing needed water removal and replacement to the interior water systems as well as necessary annual maintenance to the pop-up in general. You will no doubt customize this list to your particular pop-up but here is a good starter list.

• Perform a thorough exterior cleaning, washing down the unit and inspecting for rust or other damage from the year of camping.

• Perform exterior repairs as needed.

• Perform a thorough interior cleaning making sure you get all food residue up from the floors and beds to keep rodents out and so you don’t open the pop-up next spring to the smell of aging food crumbs or smells that are even nastier.

• Perform interior repairs as needed.

• Remove all nonpermanent items including fishing gear, children’s toys, coffee mugs, pillows or sleeping gear to be cleaned and stored indoors until next year.

• Remove all canned or packaged food stored in the camper over the summer, discarding the stale or out of date products.

• Remove all garbage and litter.

• Remove any aerosol cans that could rust or rupture due to changing temperatures.

• Lubricate all motorized moving parts.

• Inspect wheels, brakes and electrical connections.

• Inspect the underside of the pop-up and repair any holes or other damage from travel.

• Remove and store the battery.

• Cover any vents with plastic wrap to keep the pop-up airtight and keep insects or other visitors out.

• Inspect the anode rod and replace as necessary.

• Drain all water retention systems including the fresh water tank, the water heater, holding tanks and toilets.

• Drain all pipes by opening the faucets and letting as much water out as possible. Some people will go so far as to blow out the pipes to clean the moisture out as thoroughly as possible. A small amount of water retention is ok but you don’t want the water pipes and tanks full as they could freeze and cause damage to connections.

• Implement hot water heater bypass systems as instructed in your owner’s manual.

• Put nontoxic RV antifreeze into all water lines that you just drained. Be sure you purchase nontoxic antifreeze that you can buy at any camping or RV retail outlet. Do NOT use automobile antifreeze as it is highly toxic and will contaminate your water lines and create a risk to your family the next time you use the unit.

You may dread getting that winterizing done, but you’ll be glad you did it next spring. So stop procastinating and get it done!